Multi-agency group works to reduce flood risks
Clarksville, TN – The City of Clarksville on Tuesday hosted the quarterly meeting of the Tennessee Silver Jackets, a multi-agency group that works to reduce flood risks and prepare for hazardous floods across the state.
The group includes representatives from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, Tennessee Valley Authority, Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Weather Service, related state and federal agencies, and various cities and counties.
Clarksville was a founding member when the group was chartered by the Corps and TEMA in 2014 in response to issues encountered during and after the Flood of 2010, which inundated Clarksville and Nashville and much of the Cumberland River basin in Middle Tennessee.
“I quickly agreed that Clarksville needed to be part of the Silver Jackets, and we were one of Tennessee’s first large cities to sign the charter,” Clarksville Mayor Kim McMillan said. “As a river town, the organization is vital to Clarksville, and we have pledged to continue our participation and support.”
Brad Workman, Clarksville Senior Project Manager, and Ashley Farmer, the city’s Stormwater Coordinator, helped organize Tuesday’s gathering and both made presentations to the group.
“The flood showed that we needed to establish and strengthen partnerships at the local, state and federal level,” said Craig D. Carrington, a chief planner at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District. “The group also serves as a forum to sustain a comprehensive flood risk management strategy.”
Each year Silver Jacket leaders at the Corps and TEMA tackle a major flood-related project. For example, the group compiled comprehensive multi-agency technical resource guide that provides a wealth of information and contacts that agencies, cities, counties and emergency responders will need during a flood emergency.
Next up is a project to compile user-friendly flood-plain information for builders, real estate professionals and insurance agents, Silver Jackets leaders said.
Based on comments from Farmer, group leaders said stormwater issues would be a good topic for a future annual study report.
Workman explained the Cumberland Riverbank stabilization project along Riverside Drive completed in 2016 by the City and the Corps. The work was needed to combat erosion that was starting to undermine the roadway. After the meeting, the group boarded pontoon boats at the Clarksville Marina for a viewing tour of the riverbank project and Clarksville’s riverfront.
